ABORIGINAL disadvantage is worse than previously thought, with indigenous children almost seven times more likely to be abused or neglected despite a massive government effort to close the gap with the rest of the population.
(2 votes)
Kevin Rudd warned yesterday that indigenous disadvantage was more profound than had been believed as he released a Productivity Commission report that found that although improvements were being made in some areas, the gap between the indigenous population on child abuse and neglect was widening.
The Productivity Commission report, released every two years, found substantiated child abuse cases in the indigenous community more than doubled from 16 per 1000 children in 1999-2000 to 35 per 1000 children in 2007-08.
The report, Overcoming Indigenous Disadvantage, found that in the same period abuse cases among non-indigenous children increased from five per 1000 to six per 1000.
The figures suggest indigenous children were almost seven times more likely to be abused or neglected than non-indigenous children in 2007-08.
Indigenous Affairs Minister Jenny Macklin said the figures were extremely serious and showed the nation faced a very big job in improving child protection.
She said child abuse had increased in the indigenous and non-indigenous communities, but that the gap between the two was widening.
“It is a good thing that it’s coming out from behind the shadows and that we’re able to make sure that where children need the protection of state community services organisation and laws that they are able to get those protections,” Ms Macklin said.
The Prime Minister said poor data collection could be concealing the real depth of sexual and physical abuse of children in indigenous Australia.
Mr Rudd admitted the unavailability of reliable data meant he was unable to say whether his $4.6 billion Closing the Gap policy package was having any effect in lifting indigenous living standards in crucial areas such as health and education.
The Productivity Commission report showed a doubling of substantiated reports of sexual and physical attacks against children since the commonwealth began its intervention into Northern Territory indigenous communities in 2007.
Australian Crime Commission chief executive John Lawler said there had been significant under-reporting of criminal behaviour in indigenous communities. In February last year, the ACC began a special intelligence operation into indigenous violence and child abuse, drawing on its coercive powers, which allowed it to sketch a clearer picture of criminality in indigenous communities.
Mr Lawler said child abuse, domestic violence and the abuse of power by community leaders were among the most common offences uncovered.
With the government attributing most of the increase to greater detection, the report sparked a realisation among state and territory leaders meeting at the Council of Australian Governments that the nation could be dramatically understating the real depth of indigenous disadvantage, already widely recognised as serious.
“As we all engage in this and try and collect better data and as, for example, law enforcement efforts in various communities seek to extract better information, we’re also likely to see a tip-up in the data itself through greater reporting,” Mr Rudd said after COAG agreed to pump $46million into improved statistical collection and reporting over the next four years.
“What we want to have through the data is as realistic a picture as possible. One of the revealing things is just how difficult this task is going to be and secondly how flawed the data is in so many areas.” West Australian Premier Colin Barnett backed Mr Rudd, revealing that stronger policing in the Kimberley region had revealed that sexual and physical abuse of children was far worse than previously imagined.
“In two years, 500 charges have been laid for sexual abuse of children,” Mr Barnett said. “The data is going to show an upward swing in terms of sexual assault and charges laid because the policing is showing the real extent of the problem.”
Since Mr Rudd took office the government has allocated $4.6billion in new spending over six years on a suite of programs tackling health, education, early childhood development and a range of other areas. The Prime Minister has said he wants to be judged on delivering measurable improvements to living standards. He has also continued with the Howard government’s NT intervention, including bans on alcohol and pornography in indigenous communities as well as income management to ensure parents spend government assistance on food and shelter for their children.
Yesterday’s release of the Productivity Commission’s report, which is produced every two years, was meant to have provided the first insight into whether any progress was being made.
However, Productivity Commission chairman Gary Banks told COAG that in half of the measures it previously decided were crucial to alleviating disadvantage it was impossible to determine whether life had improved or gone backwards. In 20 per cent of measures, progress had been made, while in another 20 per cent there was no change. On one in 10 of the measures, the gap between indigenous and non-indigenous Australia, had worsened.
Its main finding was that substantiated child abuse cases in the indigenous community more than doubled from 16 per 1000 children in 1999-2000 to 35 per 1000 children in 2007-08. In the same period, abuse cases among non-indigenous children increased from five per 1000 to six per 1000. The figures suggested indigenous children were six times more likely to be abused or neglected than non-indigenous children in 2007-08.
Indigenous Affairs Minister Jenny Macklin said the figures were extremely serious and showed the nation faced “a very big job” in improving child protection. She said child abuse had increased in indigenous and non-indigenous communities but the gap between the two was widening. “We expect that in both … communities this is in part - in part - due to improved reporting and that is a good thing,” Ms Macklin said. “But of course the number of children who are being abused, the number of children who are being neglected is extremely serious.”